Politics & Government

6 Freeholder Candidates Will Face Off at Forum Tuesday

Race features three candidates, including two incumbents, live in Wayne.

The six candidates running for Passaic County freeholder will address residents and discuss the issues that are most important to them at a candidates forum tonight in Wayne.

The forum will be held in the council chamber in the municipal complex at 8 p.m.

The three Republican incumbents: Edward O’Connell, Michael Marotta, and Deborah Ciambrone will face off against Democratic challengers John Bartlett, Ronda Casson Cotroneo, and Hector Lora.

Find out what's happening in Waynewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Ciambrone, Marotta, and Bartlett live in Wayne.

Ciambrone was a teacher in Bloomingdale for 41 years. She was elected to the board in 2008.

Find out what's happening in Waynewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

O’Connel is married with two children. He was elected to the board in 2009 after serving on the Wanaque Council for nine years.

Marotta is a manager at the Passaic Valley Water Commission. Married with three children, he was elected to the freeholder board in 2009.

Bartlett and Cotroneo have never held public office.

Lora, the youngest candidate at 43, was elected to the Passaic City Council last year as an independent but changed his voting registration to Democrat this year.

Bartlett and Cotroneo are practicing attorneys; Bartlett practices commercial litigation, Cotroneo practices family divorce law.

Lora, who is married with three kids, is director of communications, patient transport, and mailroom services at St. Mary’s Hospital in Passaic.

It could not be determined if the debate will be broadcast on cable channel 77 or online.

— Have a question or news tip? Contact editor Daniel Hubbard at Daniel.Hubbard@patch.com or find us on Facebook and Twitter. For news straight to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here